November News

Written November 23, 2012

 (See bottom of the post for update)

We pray that this Thanksgiving Day was a special time recognizing the goodness of God. Our family celebrated by sharing in this a meal with several others families- turkey and all the fix ‘ins, but the part we cherished most was writing down on the back of colorful paper leaves what we are most thankful for and then sharing how the love of our Father God and his intimate provisions have been so strikingly clear this year and in this season of life for our family.

We are specifically writing to inform some of you and to catch others of you up to speed on Caleb, his health, our family and decisions we are in the process of making concerning all three…

Over the past several months we have had serious concerns about Caleb’s health over the past several months.  In May just before we were Stateside for the weddings Caleb had what we thought was a reoccurrence of Bilharzia symptoms- rash, high fevers and joint pain. He was given the treatment and we left for California. He felt better for a few weeks but in June the symptoms were back. After visits to more than 1 doctor he was treated for “tick fever” and then loosely diagnosed with Reiter’s Syndrome or Reactive Arthritis brought on by an infection either viral or bacterial. The treatment for this was a high and long regimen of prednisolone. Over the past several months he has tapered off of the steroid three times only to have a relapse or “flare up” of the symptoms again and again.

The most recent flare up with symptoms including fevers, (reaching 104.9), severe joint and muscle pain  (to the point that several times he was unable to walk),  brought concern that perhaps this was not the right diagnosis and so he was tested for another suspected cause… brucellosis (bacteria acquired from cattle, beef or milk). The initial test came back negative but the doctor sent his blood to a lab in S. Africa to be tested again with more sophisticated equipment.  Not wanting Caleb’s condition to worsen while waiting for the test results, he started Caleb on the treatment anyway. After three days of treatment Caleb was in fact getting worse rather than better and so he went back to the doctor (Monday). Another practicing physician at the medical center checked Caleb out and believes that he has Still’s Disease. A diagnostic type test was done on Caleb’s blood and there is ample evidence to diagnose him with Still’s Disease.

Caleb has been taken off of the medications for treating brucellosis and is back on a high dose of prednisolone. However this past week has still been rough. Caleb had not been able to sleep for six nights straight because the fevers and joint pains were so intense. Thankfully last night he was able to get almost four hours of sleep! The diagnosing doctors have recommended and the leaders here at New Hope as well as our family in the States agree that it is in Caleb’s best interest to return to the States in order to get treatment, learn to manage his disease and to fully recover. We are praying that fevers will subside in the next few days so that he will be able to travel. Please pray with us. Plane tickets for the entire family to go to California are on hold for Wednesday the 28^th and will be purchased on Monday if Caleb is feeling well enough to fly.

 

Our adoption process (the timing of finalizing the adoption and pursuing immigrant visas for Nico and Nate)…

We spoke with our attorney who informed us that the judge that heard our case and who would grant the adoption order has extended his two week leave to four weeks. In actuality his leave will extend through January because the court system in Uganda recesses for holiday (mid Dec. - mid Jan.). This means that we will not have a ruling until sometime in Jan. or possibly Feb. Our lawyer reassured us that we do not need to be present for the ruling and that he will file all necessary finalization papers with the ministries we are required to here in Uganda to do so with and then will send the final court orders to us in the U.S. We also spoke with the U.S. embassy in Kampala and were told that we are able to file for immigrant visas while the boys are in the U.S. on visitors visa’s (which expire in June 2013) as soon as we have our adoption finalized.

We have been continually reminded by many of you and by the Spirit of the living God himself that there is joy in His presence and it is His presence that we are seeking!

Celebrating Nathaniel Mitchell

After a long day driving in and out of Kampala for doctor appointments we returned home to a meal prepared by friends and co-workers. And after dinner we celebrated Nate! The day after Thanksgiving, three years ago God brought Nate into our family. We call this homecoming event, “God made me a Mitchell,” the day that God made known to us His plan from the beginning for our family. Our prayer for both Nathaniel and Nicolas Psalm 139… We praise God, for Nate is fearfully and wonderfully made! Such a celebration is only complete with an M cake made with M&M’s! We are so blessed to have Nate as our son, and we are sometimes overwhelmed that God has entrusted us with such beautiful boys!

Thank you for your prayers, counsel, encouraging texts, phone calls, meals, and for watching our kids while we’ve been ferrying to and from the doctor!

The Mitchell’s

Update November 27, 2012

 

This is just a quick update on Caleb and what has been planned for our departure.

We have not tried yet to board any flights to America as we had initially planned because Caleb was not feeling up to making the trip.

 

After a conversation with a pharmacist in the States, Caleb began raising his prednisone dose from 90 mg to 110 mg on Monday morning after a long night of high fevers (40.8 C/ 105.5 F). Last night (Monday) Caleb's fever came again reaching the same temperature and he therefore increased his dose of prednisone to 130 mg this morning. We hope that he will not have to up the dose again, but if the fever persists he will taper up to 150 mg then consult the pharmacist about how to proceed from there. We are now awaiting confirmation on tickets to fly out of Entebbe on a commercial airline flight on Friday. This morning we received word that in addition to purchasing the tickets for our family's flight, one of our supporting churches, is sending Caleb's cousin J.T. King and possibly their Global Ministries pastor, to Uganda to assist us with the trip to the US. This decision was one the church made in efforts to fully support us and we receive it a blessing and tangible provision from our Father God.

I (Alair) am on day two of malaria treatment and should be feeling better soon. The boys are doing well and as of now are viewing all of this as a great adventure- which is probably a very good way to walk through life with our God isn't it!?!

 

Please continue to pray…

 

That “he will have no fear of bad news; that his heart is steadfast, trusting in God.” Psalm 112:7

That we will “… fix our thoughts on Jesus…” Hebrews 3:1

That we will “Hope in God” and “praise Him for the help of His presence.” Psalm 42:5

That we will cling to the truth that…

“The Lord is near to all who call upon him, to all who call on him in truth.” Psalm 145:18

“For He Himself is our peace…” Ephesians 2:14

“He is Immanuel…” “God with us” Matthew 1:23

 

Thank you for praying,

Alair for the Mitchell family

November News

Written November 23, 2012

 (See bottom of the post for update)

We pray that this Thanksgiving Day was a special time recognizing the goodness of God. Our family celebrated by sharing in this a meal with several others families- turkey and all the fix ‘ins, but the part we cherished most was writing down on the back of colorful paper leaves what we are most thankful for and then sharing how the love of our Father God and his intimate provisions have been so strikingly clear this year and in this season of life for our family.

We are specifically writing to inform some of you and to catch others of you up to speed on Caleb, his health, our family and decisions we are in the process of making concerning all three…

Over the past several months we have had serious concerns about Caleb’s health over the past several months.  In May just before we were Stateside for the weddings Caleb had what we thought was a reoccurrence of Bilharzia symptoms- rash, high fevers and joint pain. He was given the treatment and we left for California. He felt better for a few weeks but in June the symptoms were back. After visits to more than 1 doctor he was treated for “tick fever” and then loosely diagnosed with Reiter’s Syndrome or Reactive Arthritis brought on by an infection either viral or bacterial. The treatment for this was a high and long regimen of prednisolone. Over the past several months he has tapered off of the steroid three times only to have a relapse or “flare up” of the symptoms again and again.

The most recent flare up with symptoms including fevers, (reaching 104.9), severe joint and muscle pain  (to the point that several times he was unable to walk),  brought concern that perhaps this was not the right diagnosis and so he was tested for another suspected cause… brucellosis (bacteria acquired from cattle, beef or milk). The initial test came back negative but the doctor sent his blood to a lab in S. Africa to be tested again with more sophisticated equipment.  Not wanting Caleb’s condition to worsen while waiting for the test results, he started Caleb on the treatment anyway. After three days of treatment Caleb was in fact getting worse rather than better and so he went back to the doctor (Monday). Another practicing physician at the medical center checked Caleb out and believes that he has Still’s Disease. A diagnostic type test was done on Caleb’s blood and there is ample evidence to diagnose him with Still’s Disease.

Caleb has been taken off of the medications for treating brucellosis and is back on a high dose of prednisolone. However this past week has still been rough. Caleb had not been able to sleep for six nights straight because the fevers and joint pains were so intense. Thankfully last night he was able to get almost four hours of sleep! The diagnosing doctors have recommended and the leaders here at New Hope as well as our family in the States agree that it is in Caleb’s best interest to return to the States in order to get treatment, learn to manage his disease and to fully recover. We are praying that fevers will subside in the next few days so that he will be able to travel. Please pray with us. Plane tickets for the entire family to go to California are on hold for Wednesday the 28^th and will be purchased on Monday if Caleb is feeling well enough to fly.

 

Our adoption process (the timing of finalizing the adoption and pursuing immigrant visas for Nico and Nate)…

We spoke with our attorney who informed us that the judge that heard our case and who would grant the adoption order has extended his two week leave to four weeks. In actuality his leave will extend through January because the court system in Uganda recesses for holiday (mid Dec. - mid Jan.). This means that we will not have a ruling until sometime in Jan. or possibly Feb. Our lawyer reassured us that we do not need to be present for the ruling and that he will file all necessary finalization papers with the ministries we are required to here in Uganda to do so with and then will send the final court orders to us in the U.S. We also spoke with the U.S. embassy in Kampala and were told that we are able to file for immigrant visas while the boys are in the U.S. on visitors visa’s (which expire in June 2013) as soon as we have our adoption finalized.

We have been continually reminded by many of you and by the Spirit of the living God himself that there is joy in His presence and it is His presence that we are seeking!

Celebrating Nathaniel Mitchell

After a long day driving in and out of Kampala for doctor appointments we returned home to a meal prepared by friends and co-workers. And after dinner we celebrated Nate! The day after Thanksgiving, three years ago God brought Nate into our family. We call this homecoming event, “God made me a Mitchell,” the day that God made known to us His plan from the beginning for our family. Our prayer for both Nathaniel and Nicolas Psalm 139… We praise God, for Nate is fearfully and wonderfully made! Such a celebration is only complete with an M cake made with M&M’s! We are so blessed to have Nate as our son, and we are sometimes overwhelmed that God has entrusted us with such beautiful boys!

Thank you for your prayers, counsel, encouraging texts, phone calls, meals, and for watching our kids while we’ve been ferrying to and from the doctor!

The Mitchell’s

Update November 27, 2012

 

This is just a quick update on Caleb and what has been planned for our departure.

We have not tried yet to board any flights to America as we had initially planned because Caleb was not feeling up to making the trip.

 

After a conversation with a pharmacist in the States, Caleb began raising his prednisone dose from 90 mg to 110 mg on Monday morning after a long night of high fevers (40.8 C/ 105.5 F). Last night (Monday) Caleb's fever came again reaching the same temperature and he therefore increased his dose of prednisone to 130 mg this morning. We hope that he will not have to up the dose again, but if the fever persists he will taper up to 150 mg then consult the pharmacist about how to proceed from there. We are now awaiting confirmation on tickets to fly out of Entebbe on a commercial airline flight on Friday. This morning we received word that in addition to purchasing the tickets for our family's flight, one of our supporting churches, is sending Caleb's cousin J.T. King and possibly their Global Ministries pastor, to Uganda to assist us with the trip to the US. This decision was one the church made in efforts to fully support us and we receive it a blessing and tangible provision from our Father God.

I (Alair) am on day two of malaria treatment and should be feeling better soon. The boys are doing well and as of now are viewing all of this as a great adventure- which is probably a very good way to walk through life with our God isn't it!?!

 

Please continue to pray…

 

That “he will have no fear of bad news; that his heart is steadfast, trusting in God.” Psalm 112:7

That we will “… fix our thoughts on Jesus…” Hebrews 3:1

That we will “Hope in God” and “praise Him for the help of His presence.” Psalm 42:5

That we will cling to the truth that…

“The Lord is near to all who call upon him, to all who call on him in truth.” Psalm 145:18

“For He Himself is our peace…” Ephesians 2:14

“He is Immanuel…” “God with us” Matthew 1:23

 

Thank you for praying,

Alair for the Mitchell family

Thanksgiving Celebration

This year’s Thanksgiving we were blessed with a visit from Uganda’s First Lady, Janet Museveni.
Interview with Tim Peterson, Staff Pastor and coordinator of 2012 Thanksgiving Celebration

I understand Thanksgiving is an annual event here. Can you tell us the purpose of New Hope Uganda’s Thanksgiving celebration?
The purpose is to remind us to give thanksgiving about what God has brought about here, and the amazing works He’s doing in this place – not to take the credit for anything we’ve done, but to give Him the glory.
How was this year’s Thanksgiving similar and different to past years’ Thanksgivings?

Ugandan First Lady Janet Museveni being welcomed at New Hope's Thanksgiving celebration.

[It was] similar in that we bring the whole community – not only the Kasana community, but the surrounding community, to join us in giving thanks. We represented many different languages in our singing, and we celebrated what God has done in the last year, not only in Kasana but in Kobwin and Musana camps as well. It was different in the fact that we didn’t have a processional, mostly due to the security issues, but also due to changing the way we do things. But unlike most years, we had the First Lady [of Uganda] here and although she was a guest at our very first Thanksgiving, it isn’t a regular occurrence at Kasana. The other thing is that we had a lot more children involved with what was going on than in previous years.
Can you describe the First Lady’s participation in this year’s Thanksgiving?
She had two separate roles – one was to see our Special Needs program and the children that were involved in the program, and to open the Hope Family House by cutting the ribbon, placing her handprint on the wall, and planting a citrus tree. The second part was taking part in the actual Thanksgiving service and giving the keynote address. We also appreciated the words from her daughter, Patience, and appreciated her words of challenge about building a legacy for those who come after.
What role did the children play in the celebration?
The biggest roles that they had were singing, ushering, security, and serving food… but all the children were valuable in giving testimonies,singing, and making this a place of welcoming community for all the guests who came outside.
In what specific ways did you see God working?
That all the pieces came together, for one thing! But many people were blessed by the children who were helping them, ushering them, caring for them… and many, including Mrs. Museveni, were impacted by the heartfelt thanksgiving. As she came tired and left refreshed, many others did as well. We appreciated the deaf ministry that came and cared for us by dancing and worshipping God with us. Others were blessed by the testimonies, both verbal and the card testimonies telling what God has done in their lives in the past year. And finally, many were surprised and pleased by the food that was served and how it was served.
As overall coordinator of the event, are there any specific success stories you’d like to share?
The biggest success story was the children showing responsibility. They really showed themselves far beyond their age in maturity. Theyblessed others and blessed God by the way they cared for others without thought for their own comfort, even to the point of missing some of the service because they themselves were serving.
Interview by Harrison Scott

A day in the life of Nico and Nate.  They had fun playing with a dead python after the farm workers killed it. Apparently the python was eating a goat at the time of its capture.

May June Udate

Mitchell Update May/ June and a bit of July 2012

Are we really sending our May and June update in mid July? The past few months were so full we will not be able to do justice when describing each event, but here are the highlights. During the month of May two teams from the States were scheduled to visit New Hope Uganda, Kasana, one from Utah and one from Arizona. Their arrivals were anticipated but created a bit of a situation for our family as Caleb is the Teams coordinator and our family hoped to be in California for two weddings! Thanks to our friends Keith McFarland and Hannah Kusler (also our old partner in Teams) and our assistant Jordana Bakimi for taking on those teams so that we could be there for my Dad and his new bride Patricia’s wedding ceremony on May 12^th and my sister Janea and Josh Beakley’s covenant union on the 19^th! All four of us Mitchells were able to fly to California and celebrate marriage because of a wonderful, which made it all the more meaningful. Both occasions were uniquely special and we were blessed in a myriad of ways and by numerous people during this season of celebration. Thank you LORD for being a God of covenant who perfectly demonstrates covenant love! We arrived back in Uganda on the 23^rd.  Hardly over the jet-lag from our two weeks in Cali, we jumped right back into the activities here at New Hope! The last Friday of May New Hope’s Institute of Child Care and Family had their class graduation. We were excited to celebrate the graduation of Pacific Family’s Kigundu Wilson from this five month intensive training. The word “intensive” is accurate, not because the class itself is so tough, but because God so faithfully challenges, and transforms lives during this time. Days after graduation Wilson joined the East family (fellow classmates during their course) as they moved to Gulu and started their childcare ministry (with Four Corners Ministries). What a joy to see God take Wilson to a place of ministry where he will be privileged to lead others to the healing hands of the Father God, where he himself has received healing! Thank you Lord for the fruit in Wilson’s life! Never the less, emotions were mixed as we said good-bye. I (Alair) fought back tears as we dropped him in Kampala to catch a bus for Gulu, and to start a very new chapter in his life. It was my first experience with one of our kids “leaving the nest,” but the promise of many more similar experiences await (especially when you are part of a family that exceeds twenty)!

About a week later we travelled to Jinja for a foreign staff seminar/ retreat. Four days and evenings were filled with discussions and teachings on co-ministering cross-culturally, opportunities to encourage one another by listening and praying specifically for each foreign staff person/ family, and time for fun and fellowship. When we returned from the retreat we had a little less than a week to finish preparations for the County Line Church of God team who arrived on June 7^th and 8^th. This team did it all- from tutoring in the primary school, working in the clinic and with the ladies who care for Hope Family’s babies, to painting trusses, ceilings and even a mural in Hope Family’s new home! Not only did they serve through their work, but they served our Pacific Family by building the foundations of authentic relationship. They shared testimonies of the journey God has had them on in their lives- challenges, conflicts and change that He has brought them through. They served alongside Pacific Family during an outreach to relatives of Peter and Rebecca (the eight year old twins in Pacific Family) and literally walked life with many of our kids. Thank you Lord for using willing and empty vessels and thank you County Line for your many generous gifts, for loving our kids, and serving our great God!

The third Sunday of June Kasana Community Church had an afternoon baptism service and several people gave testimony to their commitment to follow Christ before entering the water to be baptized. It was a special time for Pacific Family as we rejoiced with Sarah, Jalia and David! Thank you Lord for the saving work you have done in their lives!

June finished with two more teams- Baker Lutheran from Montana who worked tirelessly at Musana Camps with a short visit to Kasana and the North Creek Youth Team from Washington who served our school, reached out to the community, and blessed Worcester Family. And since it is pushing the middle of July we’ll include New Hope Uganda’s Thanksgiving celebration last Saturday. The days leading up to this year’s annual commemoration were full of planning for the event (more so than an average Thanksgiving Day celebration because this year even Janet Museveni, the President’s wife, joined in the festivities).  But it was also a time of preparing our hearts to bring an offering of Thanksgiving to God for all that He is and has done over the past year. Thank you Lord for your faithfulness to New Hope Uganda!

Wild Fires

The familiar nursery rhyme, “Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day,”
has no place, even for children, in this part of the world! As each dry season
comes to an end the entire country eagerly awaits the rainy season to begin.
Rain means life… water to drink, and cook with, planting to begin, green vegetation for animals to graze on, and the end of the coughs, asthma and allergies that come from the burning of brush and the red dust that seems to blanket everything. Brush fires on the New Hope’s Enterprise farm flared
very near our home for a week as surrounding farms and community members cleared land and flames jumped from one neighboring property to the next (threatening a few buildings, and claiming some of the efforts of our farm).
Along with the rest of Uganda, we have been anticipating the rain since we arrived in January, Nicolas was eager too, but for different reasons that we adults. Nico has been longing to play and splash in the puddles in his new rain boots and coat. It has only rained a few times, but he was ready! Nate’s favorite part was the mud the rain left behind!
Transitions are often challenging and our transition from the U.S. back to Uganda has been no exception, but God has been faithful to His word and has provided for each challenge out of the abundance of his riches… grace for each day and even more, the knowledge that He was, is and always will be Emanuel, God with us! Thank you for praying! We are also thankful for the way God answered prayers for continued relationship with the boys and girls in our family group. For those of you are just getting acquainted with us and the Kasana family, let me try to paint a picture for your minds eye. The fatherless (including children whose parents have abdicated the physical and relational aspects of parenting) or completely orphaned children who live here at New Hope Uganda are placed in family groups (God sets the lonely in families Ps. 86:8). These family groups might be compared to foster family in the United States.
God’s design for family is never represented perfectly in any family here on earth. Such perfection can only be found in Him and flawless fatherhood can only be experienced in relationship with Him. With His guidance however, as any other family seeking God’s glory, the children here at New Hope Kasana’s Children Center are given a unique opportunity to belong, to experience family. In these seven families, we pray that each child will experience the love and healing only their Father God can bring. Ultimately we pray for each child to experience the grace of salvation through Jesus Christ. Additionally we pray that they will receive and reciprocate genuine love, acceptance, and trust as they grow and mature through childhood, adolescence and early adulthood. Please continue to pray for us and the many committed individuals who serve as parents like Rukundo William Pacific Family Father and Christine Pacific Family mother who has been very sick. Pray also for family associates (Aunties and Uncles) as we alongside the family parents, endeavor to build trust, enter the hurt places in their hearts and direct these young people to the One who cares, loves and heals. Join us as we pray for the children we love and serve in our Pacific family.
Pray for Wilson Kigundu Wilson is 21 years old and has been here at Kasana, in Pacific Family since he was 8 years old. Two years ago, when he was in S4 (his last year of secondary/ high school) Wilson accepted Christ and has since been a journey of challenges and growth. Right now he is in a training course offered here at New Hope. This five month course is designed to confront world views from any culture, redirect individuals to the word and purposes of God, identify woundedness in the their lives and in relationship with teachers and other students, seek the transformation and healing the Lord desires to bring as they then minister to others, specifically orphans! (We were blessed to have gone through this training almost four years ago when we first came to Uganda.) Pray for Wilson as he desires to learn and experience all that God has for him during this time. Pray as he cultivates a God honoring world view. Pray as he seeks to start and conduct a business that would bring glory to His Lord. Pray that his heart would remain soft as he waits on God to direct his steps.
Pray for us the Mitchell’s, as we continue to build into the children God has placed in our lives, for clarity on how best to coordinate short-term service teams, and for wisdom in how we balance family, ministry and work.
Praising the Lord for all that He is and all that He does! The Mitchells- Caleb, Alair, Nicolas, and Nathaniel
Mitchell News

Happy New Year!

Dear Family and Friends,
As we start the New Year appreciative for the opportunities to have visited with many of you, we’ve also begun to identify a familiar twinge of sadness as we are not being able to take you with us when we leave. Yet we know and are excited about the ways God uses the times and places He situates each us in His sovereignty! It also helps that we are able to anticipate seeing some of you in Uganda in the not so distant future. Again, thank you for your continued support of us, and please know how grateful we are for the year end gifts many of you sent in.
Our time in the States presented an incredible chance to reconnect with family and friends, and to introduce the boys to loved ones that will again, be so far away once we arrive back in Uganda. This Christmas season was filled with sweet times with our families, times that have been etched in our minds and hearts, and times we will surely recall when we have settled back into life in Uganda. One of the many blessings we received while in Indiana was our time with County Line Church of God, our sending church Blackhawk Ministries, and Auburn Baptist church. All three churches have been an enormous encouragement to us and we are very thankful to be in partnership with them. Not only have they supported us finically but they have been prayer warriors on our behalf.
It was amazing to see God’s provision specifically through County Line Church of God as they took their once a year Christmas time offering which they call the “Joy to the World” offering. This year the funds raised were designated for New Hope in order to outfit 6 of our family groups with solar powered lighting. On a daily basis, solar light is practical way to meet a need that directly impacts the lives of approximately 140 children who call New Hope, “home”. Often the children are interrupted while studying, and their nightly activities are complicated when power goes out. The church’s goal was to raise $12,000 to accomplish this project. Not only was that goal met, but because of the outpouring of God’s generous people there, the goal was far surpassed with a total of $27,000 given. We hope that each time government power goes out in our district and the solar lights at New Hope are turned on, the children will be reminded of God’s provision for them, and the love of the body of Christ half way around the world. The extra funds will allow other vital projects to the ministry to be completed (solar power for additional buildings, much needed text books for our schools, and general supplies for the children at New Hope).
Our flight is scheduled to depart out of Chicago on the 6th with a lay-over in London, then to arrive in Uganda late evening of the 7th. Please continue to pray for us as we have begun to pack and to say some of the many “good-byes” that will fill this week. Pray for health, safety, and the anxiety that often accompanies continent and culture hopping. We know and serve a God who sees our every need and gives peace that surpasses all understanding. Pray also for our financial support. Currently, we are under budget in the area of “non cost of living” expenses such as adoption fees, health insurance, and vehicle expenses, flights between Uganda and the U.S. along with travel costs while in the States. We plan a 30 month budget and are short around $400 a month. Be assured that we are adjusting our budget like everyone else in this economy and are doing our best to be good stewards of the gifts that have been given.
Thank you again and we praise God for you all!
Caleb, Alair, Nico and Nate
www.newhopeuganda.org
www.calebalair.blogspot.com
Psalm 68:5, 6